For me, it's a valid piece of art.  It's well put
together and, in another place and a much greater
time, it might be appropriate to have such a work.  If
one thinks of art as art's sake, there is precedent to
allow it.

But it is in absolute poor taste to erect it now.
There are far too many people walking around feeling
the after effects of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder as
a result of the events of 9/11 to even consider
leaving it up at this time.

A lot of the great works were not appreciated during
the creator's lifetime.  They only find their mark
post-humously.  It may be THAT long before most can
see the artwork for its artistic value and not see the
cruelty it evinces today.

Let's be clear.  What happened to the victims of 9/11
was horrific.  For many, they never found a body.  It
was lucky if they found whole body parts.  In the
ruins, as I recall from my reading earlier, they found
someone's heart.  Just the heart, no other part of the
body.

While somewhat beautiful in form (if art is form, and
you're not associating it with what actually
happened), when you compare it with what actually
happened, the picture is far too kind.  Falling with
that velocity would not leave the cranium intact.
Splatter would be more like it.  I shudder to think of
what those victims actually looked like, and thank God
I didn't have to see them myself.

For the survivors of those lost, it was a horrific
event most cannot imagine.  But let's also be careful
to put this in perspective with tragedies of a major
proportion.  Down the road, it may be ok to bring that
artwork back into view (assuming they take it down
soon), and the survivors of those lost in 9/11
shouldn't be allowed, by themselves, to control what
happens to the nation as it relates to this event.
For now, we should be considerate of them.

I don't mean to sleight their loss.  Their loss, in
some ways, is our own, though nowhere near as
personal.  It will be something they may never get
over.

But their loss cannot keep the country from
remembering what happened, and works of art frequently
serve to memorialize tragic events.

It's simply too soon to put something up that is so
poignant.


--- Deb Fuller <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
> Okay, i seemed to have channeled columnist Jan
> Herman when I wrote my response
> as I didn't read his piece until afterwards. :)
>
> I looked at the statue again and had the same
> reaction, to me it looked like a
> woman falling, not actually hitting the ground.
> Disturbing, tragic but not
> worthy of taking it down.


=====
Indigo Nights
[log in to unmask]

Looking for a Job?  Try Got Links?, Your One-Stop Portal
http://victorian.fortunecity.com/stanmer/414

__________________________________________________
Do you Yahoo!?
New DSL Internet Access from SBC & Yahoo!
http://sbc.yahoo.com

=========================================================
Important Subscriber Information:

The Museum-L FAQ file is located at http://www.finalchapter.com/museum-l-faq/ . You may obtain detailed information about the listserv commands by sending a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "help" (without the quotes).

If you decide to leave Museum-L, please send a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "Signoff Museum-L" (without the quotes).